Recently voted “Favorite Place for Creole Food” by the readers of New Orleans Magazine, The Creole Grille (formerly known as Mr. Ed’s Creole Grille) off of Veterans Boulevard offers diners an upscale-casual experience with classic Creole food.
The menu includes three homemade soups – including Creole Gumbo – and Louisiana Blue Crab Dip. For the main course, choices include many salads, wraps and poor boys, as well as house specialties including red beans and rice, grilled pompano or bourbon-glazed pork. For dessert, a specialty is the homemade bread pudding.
This family-friendly location, now owned by Jamie Keyes, the sister of Mr. Ed, is open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and offers daily lunch and chef specials.
The restaurant’s website offers coupons for either a complimentary glass of their house wine or bread pudding.
Information, 5241 Veterans Blvd., 889-7992, www.thecreolegrille.com.
Rouses for Restaurants
Louisiana-based supermarket chain Rouses is promoting itself as a place where chef’s come. According to the company, some of the most popular New Orleans chefs shop at the markets, including John Besh, Donald Link, Leah Chase and Susan Spicer, as well as the chefs from Dickie Brennan’s Steak House, Galatoire’s, Antoine’s, Arnaud’s and Commander’s Palace.
J.P. Rouse opened City Produce Company in Thibodaux in 1923. The store offered locally grown ingredients from nearby parishes and also shipped Louisiana items to supermarkets as far away as Alaska. In the ’60s, the family business expanded after opening its first grocery store. Besides fresh produce, customers now found dry goods, seafood and meats. Currently, the chain has 36 locations in Louisiana and Mississippi with additional stores planned to open in 2011. A representative for Rouses says, “It’s that commitment to buying and serving local that has helped Rouses grow from one small store in 1960 into the ninth largest independent grocer in the United States.” – S.H.
Information, various locations, www.shop.rouses.com.
Parkway’s Newfound Fame
Parkway Bakery made it into the national spotlight last year when President Barack Obama and his family stopped in during a visit commemorating the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. It was a fitting tribute, as Parkway itself was damaged by the disaster but was rebuilt in the following months, serving as a spot for many recovery workers.
Parkway has also been featured on the Travel Channel. The place continues to serve enormous poor boys in a down-home spot near Bayou St. John. The atmosphere is “poor boy casual.”
Last month, readers of this magazine voted Parkway No. 1 for serving their Favorite Poor Boys. The current owner of Parkway is Jay Nix, who restored the building in the 1990s after purchasing it from the Timothy Family, who had owned it since ’22.
Parkway is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays through Sundays.
Information, 482-3047, 538 Hagan Ave., www.parkwaybakeryandtavernnola.com.
– Sarah Ravits
